Cambiare
by OhMyGucciness
Summary: How is it, that within a span of twenty-four hours, an ambitious, brooding preteen became a lazy mess of a person? All Sasuke wanted to do was loaf around at home and live off his inheritance. Unfortunately for him, the newly formed team 7 had other ideas.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

"YOU'RE LATE"

An annoyingly loud voice pierced the silence in the formerly quiet meadow. Naruto was agitated, to say the least. He shoved up his sleeves and began to stalk towards Sasuke when Sakura forcefully pushed him away and rushed forwards.

"Sasuke, are you alright? Did something happen!?" She asked franticly.

He flinched at her lack of respect for his personal space.

"…. I woke up late "He struggled in her vice grip painfully aware his sore muscles. Sakura noticed his discomfort and quickly let him go.

Sasuke awkwardly backed off and took a look around the area. The absence of his sensei was not lost on him. "Where is he?"

"Who? Oh you mean Kakashi sensei? We've been waiting since- "

"THAT BASTARD IS WORSE THAN YOU"

He began to walk away in an attempt to evade another earful of Narutos rant and took a seat at the base of a nearby tree. It did make sense that Kakashi would be late, considering their first meeting.

"That guy... Just who does he think he is?!"

"Shut it idiot! Can't you see he's tired?"

His eyebrow twitched as his teammates started to squabble. This was going to be a long day… why did he even bother getting up? Silence elapsed in the area once more and Sasuke relaxed his features. Just as he was about to drift off, he was abruptly awoken by a chorus of shrieks.

"YOU'RE LATE"

He glared at the duo.

* * *

Sasuke watched as the jonin briefly explained their task with heavy disinterest. He shuffled back, further from the group as a strange sensation began to quell in his stomach, as Kakashi droned on. Strangely, it didn't alarm him as much as it should've. What _did_ concern him, was finding a comfortable place to sleep.

His fatigue and drowsiness had come as a surprise seeing as normally, he was able to survive on a mere five hours of sleep after hours of vigorous training. He awoke today after eleven hours of sleep. Within mere seconds, Sasuke felt his vision become unfocused. He frowned, trying to shake off his drowsiness.

He directed his attention back to his sensei just in time to see Naruto swiftly apprehended by Kakashi after attempting a surprise attack. He tilted his head in exasperation. His immediately shifted his attention towards the other side of the meadow **.** _That tree looks like a decent place to rest…_

"Begin!"

Sasuke effortlessly leapt towards his destination and took no time to relax. But something stopped him from falling asleep. By deciding to take a nap in the middle of the test, he would be clearly admitting to not taking his life as a ninja seriously.

Perhaps he should at least attempt to pretend that he still cared. It would at the very least prevent him from being accused as a spy or impersonation.

But any motivation to do so quickly vanished when he looked down from his 'hiding spot' and glimpsed Naruto getting tossed around by Kakashi like a sack of potato's. This life wasn't for him, he decided. If he seemed suspicious, he would deal with the consequences later. life as a ninja was too tiresome therefor, failing this test wouldn't be all that bad.

With that thought in mind, he closed his eyes, and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

A dull thud echoed in the quiet forest.

A light shove was all it took to send him spiraling down from the tree. Sasuke glowered up at the instigator. The perpetrator was none other than his newly assigned sensei.

"I'm sorry. It's just, you looked so comfy up there! I thought I'd join you but…" Kakashi cocked his head sideways "I guess the branch wasn't big enough for the two of us." He finished with a mocking smile.

"Why don't you go pick on Naruto?" Sasuke spat shaking in anger. He was in the middle of a really nice dream before his rude awakening. The sleep didn't really help his drowsiness as much as he hoped it would either.

"He's a little… preoccupied at the moment." Kakashi chirped, sending Sasuke another one of his _irritatingly_ happy smiles.

Sasuke turned to see Naruto hanging upside down from a tree, clearly struggling, but to no avail. As always, the loudmouth was causing a huge ruckus.

 _Why am I not surprised?_

He gazed back to his sensei for and stared at him for a solid two minutes in hopes of him perhaps getting bored and leaving. Kakashi stared back, refusing to move. Realizing this, Sasuke took initiative and chucked a kunai towards Kakashi before taking off. He panicked when he caught sight of the silver haired jonin quickly closing the space between them and immediately increased his speed in hopes making it to the trees, at the very least.

Unfortunately, he wasn't fast enough. Sasuke was halfway across the meadow when Kakashi swiftly pulled him back by his collar, dangling him in the air. He was seconds away from retaliating when he felt that strange feeling in his stomach grow stronger and stronger by the second.

Before he could process what was happening, his mood immediately elated, leaving him in a giddy state and bubbles of giggles escaped his mouth. Sasuke bit down on the inside of his cheek as an attempt to stop it, but laughter poured out of his mouth nonetheless.

His face burned in embarrassment when he noticed Kakashi studying him with a careful eye.

"Just what do you find so amusing?" Kakashi frowned. Something was definitely off. He was fairly certain that this wasn't typical behaviour for Sasuke. This personality deeply contrasted with the individual he had met just a day before.

"Sh-shut u-pffft BWAHAHAHA"

Sasuke began to struggle while simultaneously trying to deal with his uncontrollable laughter. He twisted and kicked in desperation an inadvertently kicked off the bells tied to Kakashi's waist in the process.

The bells flew at an alarmingly rapid rate towards a dangling Naruto and inadvertently plunged themselves into the screaming blondes mouth.

"WHEN I GET OU-uhgg mmmmmmfffff **"**

Kakashi turned his head at the sound of Naruto's muffled cries and raised his eyebrows in surprise.

 _Clever trick… So the laughing was a diversion to get to the bells. His change in demeanour was a trick to let my guard down._

Sasuke used this moment of distraction to twist himself towards Kakashi and fly through handseals in preparation for his Fireball jutsu. Recognising this, Kakashi flung Sasuke away and distanced himself from the upcoming fireball. However, there was no fireball. Bouts of smoke puffed out of Sasukes mouth as he continued to supress his chortles.

Kakashi narrowed his eyes. If laughing was his strategy to get him off guard, why hadn't he stopped now? He watched as Sasuke tried to inconspicuously edge closer to Naruto. His discretion obviously needed some work. But Kakashi made no move to show he noticed, nor stopped him. He was more curious as to how the three hellions would distribute the bells.

Sasuke internally sighed in relief as the distance helped ease his giddiness. As long as he kept his distance from Kakashi, he wouldn't have another laughing fit. He chose not to ponder about what just happened or why. That could wait.

He knew he wouldn't get another wink of sleep until the test was done with. With that thought in mind, he shifted his attention towards Naruto and the bells. Naruto, who long spat out the bells was now struggling to reach them in vain. If Kakashi didn't get the bells before him, he could safely distribute them and end the test.

With that thought noted, he raced towards Naruto. Grabbing one of the bells in the blonde's mouth, Sasuke viciously flung it towards his other teammate across the field.

 _There's no way in hell I'm becoming a ninja._

Naruto panicked after noticing one less bell in his possession. He began to flail in an attempt to stop Sasuke from taking the remaining bell.

"There's no way in hell I'm letting you take my bell, you bastard!" He swung his arms around crazily as an attempt to defend himself. He did manage to smack Sasuke square in the face.

"keep it, idiot" Sasuke spat chucking a shuriken at the thin rope holding Naruto to the tree.

"I'm not falling for any of your trick- wait what?" Naruto shrieked was he fell on his butt. He glared at the raven haired boy as he stood up while rubbing his sore bottom.

"But Sasuke… you'll go back to the academy!"

Sasuke slightly jumped at the new voice. He was surprised to see Sakura get to their location so fast. He couldn't see why she was so worried though. After all, she was so passionate about passing just hours ago. He shook off the thought. It was probably just formalities. He wouldn't put it past her though. Ambition always triumphs overall. His brother was a clear example of that.

"That's fine. I could wait a few more years" He was practically oozing confidence in reassurance. At this point, he was willing to wait his whole life.

His reassurance didn't seem to phase her however. He blinked, before it dawned upon him. A good act, he concluded. She would make a decent ninja. Like his brother. He was a really good liar to- he internally smacked himself, annoyed. Enough about his brother! He had other things to worry about.

He turned his attention to the "concerned" faces of this two former teammates and inwardly smiled. His actions today would allow him to live a relatively lavish life off his inheritance. All the pain and humiliation he endured today was surely worth-

"Take my bell." Naruto's face was oddly serious. His eyes were downcast.

…What?

Did the idiot hit his head too hard? No, maybe the moron felt the need to outdo Sakura. They'll throw a pity party and leave with 'thank yous'. He tried to convince himself of this, but nevertheless, felt a sinking feeling in his stomach.

"N-no, Naruto I'll give up my bell. I didn't do much, compared to the two of you during the test" Sakura sighed. She was clearly struggling as she admitted this. A very good actor, Sasuke reasoned sweating in desperation.

It took all her courage to strengthen her resolve, but love triumphed. She visibly straightened and offered the bell once more. "Take it Sasuke. You deserve it more than I do."

They were serious, Sasuke realized in horror.

No.

He didn't want those bells. He didn't want to pass. He didn't want to become a ninja.

Sasuke wanted to say all this but couldn't open his mouth. He was too shocked. Just how did his plan backfire this bad?

"I'm not taking your bells" He finally said, but instantly regretted, as a storm of disbelief ensued.

"IDIOT JUST TAKE IT. I DON'T NEED A DUMB BELL TO BECOME HOKAGE, BELIEVE IT!"

"Sasuke, if you don't take the bell I'll… I'll come back to the academy with you!"

"Yeah, stupid! Take this thing or I'll follow you there too!"

If it wasn't for his remaining shred of pride, Sasuke was sure he would've cried at the spot. Why couldn't these two idiots see he didn't want to be a ninja? And there they were, pushing him into a life of misery, a life of _hard work_. He felt lightheaded at the thought.

And just when he thought this situation couldn't get any worse, his sensei decided to crash their party.

"you pass!"

DAMN IT

* * *

Sasuke sighed in frustration. The test was all about teamwork in the end. If only he'd kept those bells to himself, this wouldn't have happened. He would've saved those two idiots from a life of hardship as well.

So much for living a comfortable life. The pinkish orange hue in the sky seemed to mock him and his failure. _Those morons…_

He moped all the way to his apartment. It was done and there wasn't anything left to do about it. He knew he had to deal with being a ninja and the responsibilities that came with it whether he liked it or not. But that didn't mean he would go along willingly. No. he will make this hard for everyone.

Kakashi was probably having a chummy chat with the hokage right about now. After all, Sasuke knew he was far from conspicuous today. It was only a matter of time before they found out. It wasn't like he hid it that well either. No, he was more concerned about indulging himself in afternoon naps and random bouts of laughter. Not that he could help the latter of course.

Sasuke slammed shut the door to his apartment and collapsed onto his bed. To the left of him, lay a picture of his family. Mother, father and a blacked out patch, formerly Itachi. He gazed at it with bitter nostalgia.

His entire family was gone- slaughtered by none other than his prefect brother, the clans pride and joy. His brother kept him alive though. So that he can become stronger. Become a challenge for Itachi. He chuckled at the thought.

Just a day ago, Sasuke would say that without a doubt, he would avenge his clan, but now, he felt no such desire to. The fiery passion for vengeance was now extinguished, leaving a hollow emptiness. A desire to do nothing.

And why should he try anyways? What would becoming stronger even achieve? His family was already gone and the last thing he wanted to do was follow his brother's wishes, even if it was out of spite and vengeance. Why should he even bother to listen to the man who murdered his family? If Itachi wanted him to become stronger, to hate him then he will be sorely disappointed.

Yes, this will be his vengeance. He will do absolutely nothing. Become a disappointment. He will not live up to be that challenge that his brother oh so desires. He refused to fall for Itachis mind games.

Furthermore, after today, Sasuke knew that life of a ninja was not what he wanted. But how does one go about quitting? Its not like he could just hand in a resignation letter without a good reason. Rather, when considering his behaviour during the years at the academy, it would be extremely out of place to just quit. Requesting a resignation is more likely to land him in interrogation. He winced, remembering the events that occurred hours before. He'll probably end up in interrogation regardless at this point.

Sighing in frustration, Sasuke threw himself on his bed. There was no way out.

He glared at his headband and hurled it across the room.

* * *

 **A/N: Thank you for taking the time to read my story :). I would love to hear your thought about it!**


	2. Chapter 2

To kill a certain man.

Sasuke mulled over his words as he made his way to the Uchiha compound. He didn't visit his former home often, but he was feeling particularly sentimental after his first team meeting.

It was quite late, but Sasuke outwardly had no qualms about walking down to the compound at night. However, deep inside, he felt slightly afraid. He scoffed at the thought, then shuddered. The memories of that night still lay fresh in his mind.

It was strange. His mother once told him that time heals most wounds, visible and non-visible. She was wrong. He felt just as hurt as the day it happened. No matter how much he tried, he couldn't forget the pain and betrayal that he went through that night.

So he fuelled it into anger.

In a way, the traitor's words helped him. He remembered, the day after, in the hospital he felt numb. So terrifyingly numb. Like he had lost his purpose to live. After all, his future was gone. No mother, no father, not even the kind auntie by the bakery remained...

But then he remembered _his_ words:

" _If you want to kill me… curse me! Hate me! And live a long and unsightly life… Run away… run away… and cling to your pitiful life. And then some day, when you have the same eyes as I do, come before me."_

He took the bait. Because it helped him move on. To find a purpose. And he would make that man regret the day he had uttered those words. He would make Itachi regret everything, and fear him. Then, he'll kill him. He would avenge his clan.

The wind rustled his hair, gently reminding him of his surroundings.

Sasuke stopped.

The Uchiha symbol stood proudly before him. Although the paint was slightly blurred away, the symbol was still clear to see, the red contrasting strikingly with the dull grey wall.

The gateway itself, was barren, devoid of life. Before the massacre, the compound was virtually impenetrable. It was nearly impossible to get through with multiple sharingans scanning the area.

But Itachi still managed to kill them all.

Sasuke slowly turned his gaze further into the compound. A ghost town.

The houses were barely standing. Slowly wasting away from years of negligence. Many valuables were confiscated. Most sold, the profits donated to the village. Even in death, the Uchiha clan faithfully served the village.

He willed himself forwards, passing the gates. As he walked through the ruins, a familiar numbness began to encompass him. His ears began to ring louder and louder as he moved deeper into the compound. Memories flashed behind his eyes, becoming too real for comfort.

His fists were shaking by the time he reached the heart of the Uchiha district. A desolate place.

Sasuke stopped. It was too much for him. It had been years since then, but now _still_ , it was pure hell walking through these empty roads. He had made a mistake by coming here at night.

He felt scared. He was always scared. Scared of dying. Scared that his brother would come back to finish him. Scared that he would fail in his vengeance, and get killed like all the others. Being here only magnified the feelings that he tried to suppress.

" _Someday, when you have the same eyes as I do, come before me"_

The tremors instantly stopped at the memory. He had no reason to fear. He would kill his brother and avenge his clan. _He will make that man fear him._

Numbness morphed into rage.

Rage to hatred.

Sasuke trudged on forwards.

* * *

"What the hell?! I didn't become a ninja just to pull weeds!"

Sasuke groaned at the blonde's antics. It was seven hours too early to deal with the idiot's dramatics.

His team was situated in the middle of something akin to a natural disaster. A mass of weeds spanned for what seemed like miles with no ends.

He turned his head toward the rising sun, which was conveniently blocked by the horizon. Made out of weeds. Weeds that they had to finish pulling by the end of the day. He instantly regretted crawling out of bed this morning.

"Umm Kakashi-sensei… are you sure it'll be safe? I don't think I've seen half these plants in the field guide..." Sakura was unnaturally pale as she scanned the area.

"Hmmmmm, actually, some of them _do_ look familiar...but you'll be able to quickly find out if they're toxic or not, so don't worry about that!" Sakura paled even further.

"Now, we have until sunset to finish this mission, so you better get going!" Kakashi chirped as the trio grew increasingly irritated.

"Hey! Aren't you going to help?!" Naruto accused dramatically, pointing a trembling finger at his teacher.

"As your sensei, I'm here to instruct," Kakashi replied condescendingly, as if he were talking to a small child. "I'll tell you if you're doing it wrong." The three stared at him in disbelief.

"The hell?! So we're stuck doing all the grunt work?!" Naruto yelled. Sakura clenched her fists at her sides, silently agreeing with Naruto.

Sasuke scoffed, opting to join in. "The moron is right, there's no way I'm doing this." He internally thanked Naruto for his blatant disapproval. This was the perfect excuse to go back home and crawl into bed.

"What?! Who's the moron?!" Naruto looked ready to pounce.

"..." Sasuke turned away, choosing to ignore Naruto. He suppressed a yawn.

Kakashi looked over at the scene and sighed. Seeing as the genin weren't satisfied with his answer, he turned towards a different approach, inwardly smiling at the idea. "Look, seeing as this was your first mission, I didn't wanted to worry you, but at this rate, I think it may be inevitable…." He trailed off, in a distant voice, turning his head so no one was able to catch his growing smile.

Naruto and Sakura, suddenly looked quite wary. Sasuke on the other hand was busy blinking away his sleep, irritated. His eyesight began to blur as Kakashi talked.

"W-what's inevitable?" Sakura stuttered, clasping her hands tightly.

Kakashi sauntered over a few steps closer. "You're all ninja now, and failure is not an option." He intentionally lowered his voice, adding to the drama. "And Konoha doesn't take to failure lightly." At that moment, Sasuke swore the temperature dropped a few degrees.

"Puh-lease, what's gonna happen? We're not gonna get paid?! I'm not scared!" Naruto laughed loudly, throwing his arms behind his head. There was a slight concerned edge to his voice.

"Well since you've asked…" Kakashi lone eye turned serious. "All genins who fail to complete their mission, receive one hundred lashes. " He replied, almost robotically.

"PFT-HAHAHAHHA" Naruto fell down in uncontrollable laughter.

Sasuke would have agreed with Naruto in a heartbeat, but something stopped him. A familiar numbness enveloped wasn't true was it? He never heard anything like that in the academy.

Sakura seemed to think along the same lines when she spoke up. "B-but they didn't mention anything like this in the academy!"

"Yeah! Iruka-sensei would've told us!" Naruto piped in, suddenly recovering from his laughter. "You're totally messing with us!" he declared.

"Well, believe what you want. Just don't come crying to me after you have to face the consequences." Kakashi waved his hand in farewell and disappeared, in a swirl of leaves, before anyone had a chance to rebuke. Sasuke swore he saw Kakashi-sensei crack a smile before he disappeared.

"I-it's not true... _right Sakura?"_ Naruto asked desperately. He was totally spooked. Sakura didn't reply. Her gaze was unfocused, as if she was in another world entirely. Seeing this, Naruto further deflated. Sasuke would have taken the time to laugh at the scene if he wasn't just as afraid as the others.

When Kakashi had mentioned the lashings, a memory sprung from the depths of Sasuke's mind. A long forgotten memory. The whole thing seemed too familiar, too close for comfort.

"I think he's telling the truth" Sasuke finally said, hesitantly. The two turned to him, daring him to elaborate.

* * *

" _Sasuke, why don't you go play outside?" The dark haired woman gently pushed the pouting boy out the door. He had been pestering his mother for a good two hours before she'd finally had enough._

" _Now, now. Go on, play with your friends!" She flashed him a smile before he reluctantly nodded and set off for the playground, shoving his hands in his pockets and grumbling to himself._

 _He stomped off, into the heart of the Uchiha district, a place bursting with life. He nearly bumped into another person as he weaved through the bustle, too engrossed in his childish frustration._

 _Sasuke didn't want to play with the other kids. All they wanted to do was play ninja. It was fun, for a while. But in the end, it was all pretend. His brother on the other hand was a real ninja. So why would he bother playing with pretend ninja when he could play with a real ninja?_

 _He turned a corner, but not before returning a wave from one of the off duty guards. A very good friend of his Father's. Sasuke briefly watched the guards retreating back before continuing on. According to his Father, the police force were really overworking themselves lately._

 _It seemed this was the same with Itachi, since his brother had less and less time to spend with him. Sasuke pouted at the thought. If Sasuke was a ninja, he could've probably been able to spend more time with his brother, and help out the police force._

 _He kicked a nearby stone in frustration. Sasuke knew he shouldn't feel this way. After all, it was like his father said, "For the good of the clan". But his brother always worked for the good of the clan and frankly, Sasuke was getting tired of it. At this rate, he was pretty sure his brother would be strong enough to become the Hokage one day. And then he would never have time for Sasuke._

 _It was definitely something Itachi would do. But perhaps... if his brother became Hokage, he could become the head of the police force. He grinned at the thought. That would make them a team. And if they were a team, he and Itachi can be together all the time!_

 _A familiar voice brought Sasuke out of his musings._

" _Yes, Itachi brought him back. He looked… quite pale to say the least."_

 _Uncle Ichida. He was one of the elites in the police force and another good friend of Sasuke's Father. He was in the middle of a conversation with two other members of the police force. Sasuke leaned in, interest peaked at the mention of his brother's name. A part of him wanted to stop, reasoning that eavesdropping was wrong, but ninja did it all the time! Sasuke grinned. He was definitely ninja material._

" _Shisui insisted that it was relatively minor." Another voice piped in. Sasuke couldn't recognise the face._

" _Like hell it was. You have no freaking clue how much of a bother that report was to write-" Uncle Ichida silenced the third man with a sharp glare._

 _Sasuke immediately turned on his heel, his bad mood suddenly banished. Itachi was back! He was probably at Shisui's place by the sound of the conversation. He rushed back, in hopes of catching itachi before he left again._

 _In what seemed like seconds, Sasuke ran through many twists and turns, before finally coming to a stop at the entrance to Shisui's home. He stopped at the entrance, hesitating._

 _Ninjas don't just waltz in through the front door, they sneak in! Itachi was here, and Sasuke wanted to show him just how great a ninja he would be. Perhaps he could even surprise him._

 _Sasuke smiled as he tiptoed toward the back of the house._

" _You need a medic. My skills aren't up to par." Itachi's voice resounded with clear disapproval. Sasuke didn't dare to move a muscle, instantly regretting his decision. Something told him that he wasn't supposed to be listening in on this..._

" _You know I couldn't do that." Shisui's voice was unnaturally clipped, somewhat strained._

 _There was silence. Sasuke knew that silence well. It's something Itachi did when he wasn't satisfied with an answer. He would know. It really, put him off and led him into a babbling state. Surely it wouldn't have the same effect on Shisui?_

" _Please Itachi, save your concern. At this rate he'll-" Sasuke smiled. So he wasn't the only one! He leaned in further, but lost his balance, unmasking the silence of his footsteps_

" _Who's there?" Sasuke knew he shouldn't have been scared. After all, they were family. But Itachi's tone of voice was so cold, it was terrifying. So he froze._

 _After what seemed like years, Itachi's voice startled Sasuke once more._

" _Come out Sasuke." This time, Itachi's voice sounded much warmer, if a tad bit annoyed._

" _Sorry." He squeaked, popping his head out from behind the corner. His eyes landed on multiple wounds adorned on Shisui's back. Before he could get a good look, Shisui hastily turned to face Sasuke, relieving him from the grotesque sight._

" _Ahh Sasuke, don't you know it's rude to eavesdrop?" Shisui easily slipped into a smile. All traces of pain fell from his face._

 _Still, there was an unspoken question that hung in the air. How much did Sasuke overhear? Itachi and Shisui shared a grim look, one which Sasuke blissfully ignored._

" _B-but ninja do it all the time!" Sasuke reasoned, blushing profusely. He was embarrassed, getting caught and reprimanded at the same time, in front of his brother no less! He tried to take the attention off of him by changing the subject._

" _What happened to your back? Why didn't you go to the hospital?" Sasuke rapidly shot out questions, desparate to get the attention off of himself._

 _The other two visibly relaxed at the questions._

" _Sasuke, it's rude to pry…" Itachi reprimanded. Sasuke blushed a darker shade in shame._

" _Hey, hey it's alright Itachi." Shisui laughed. He motioned Sasuke to come closer before he spoke once more. "You see, it was during a mission. I was reeaaallly hungry." Itachi sighed at Shisui's antics as he continued to disinfect the latters back._

" _So I snuck in a snack. Some dango." Shisui continued, shrugging nonchalantly at the admission. Sasuke was confused. How did that lead to that horrible injury?_

" _When my team leader found out, he was really angry. You see, you're not supposed to break ninja rules - Ouch! Itachi please be more careful…" Itachi sent a chillingly civil smile back and continued his work._

 _Sasuke's eyes widened. Ninja rules must be really important then. Although... he didn't hear a rule that forbade eating on the job. But then again, he had just enrolled into the academy._

" _I got these lashes as a result of my foolishness." Shisui continued in a grave voice, making Sasuke involuntarily shudder._

" _Shisui really…." Itachi sent a mild glare toward his close friend._

" _You wouldn't know Itachi! You always follow the rules!" Shisui glared back and crossed his arms in mock anger, before wincing in pain._

" _Anyways, make sure you always follow the rules or you'll end up like me. The hospital even sent me away! They didn't want to bother patching me u-'"_

" _Sasuke, we're leaving." Itachi grabbed Sasuke and strode away._

" _Ahh wait Itachi! At least help me bandage this up!"_

* * *

"It happened to my cousin." He stated, staring into space.

Why the hell didn't he remember this before? He should've dropped out of the academy the minute he'd first heard of it. But no, He was so enamored by the idea of being a ninja. A great ninja like his _dear brother._

"NoOoOoOoOo" Naruto looked white as a ghost as he rolled around on the ground in despair.

The area was engulfed in silence once more (minus Naruto's wails), as the three contemplated their newest predicament.

Surprisingly, Sakura was the first to move. She dusted off her clothes and straightened her back in determination. "I guess we'll just have to finish this on time then." She began working almost immediately. Naruto, on the other hand was still in a state of panic.

"How the hell are we supposed to finish this by sunset?!" Naruto cried. He jumped up and kicked a weed in frustration. Unfortunately for him, the weed rebounded and hit him square in the face. He continued to whine while rubbing his now sore nose.

"Stop fooling around Naruto, or we won't finish on time.." Sakura bit out through gritted teeth. She raised her fist in warning. Her patience was clearly wearing thin as she continued to work.

Sasuke stared at the two, trying to figure out a way to weasel himself out of this. The last thing he wanted to do was get whipped, but he could barely keep his eyes open. And why should he do any work?! He didn't even want to be here in the first place.

But then he remembered the fresh wounds on Shisui's back. He couldn't handle that. Not alone.

He bent down in defeat, tugging at a weed but nearly lost balance due to dizziness. He was way too tired for this. He couldn't do this. They couldn't do this. They were going to get one hundred lashes.

Another wave of dizziness washed over Sasuke as he desperately tried to regain his balance. It was getting harder and harder to keep his eyes open. He supposed he could slip away when the other two occupied, but that would result in a search party not to mention it'll be an automatic fail since no work would get done. Sasuke frowned at the thought. That was his only option at this point though... He didn't want to waste anymore time think-

"But Sakura, you don't see that old man hokage pulling out weeds! I'll talk to him!" Naruto reasoned, dodging a hit from Sakura.

He stared at the scene, and then it clicked. He could use the loudmouth.

Sasuke's lips slowly curled into his trademark smirk. He wouldn't get hurt or have to lift a finger in work.

He turned to his two teammates and scoffed loudly. This instantly caught Naruto's attention.

"What's _your_ problem?!" Naruto demanded, jumping up. He stomped over to Sasuke and attempted to stare him down.

"It's stupid. How you pretend you don't want to pull weeds." Sasuke leaned forward challengingly. He silently hoped the dead last would take the bait.

"What?! Of course I can! I just don't wan-"

Sasuke cut off Naruto before he could finish, "I don't think a moron like you even knows _how_ to pull weeds. Or maybe you're so scared that you can't even lift a finger." He laced the last few words with contempt before flashing another smirk and walking away.

Three.

Two.

One.

"YOU'RE THE MORON, YOU MORON. WHO'S SCARED?!" Naruto bellowed, waving his arms at the retreating boys back. Sasuke continued to walk however, seemingly unperturbed by Naruto's words.

The lack of reaction proved to further irritate Naruto, only for him to blurt out, "I bet I could pull way more weeds than you ever could!"

Sasuke grinned, before quickly schooling his features as fast as he could and turned. "You're on," he said smirking.

Naruto's eyes widened momentarily, before he beamed, all previous anger forgotten. "Just wait, I'll beat you so bad that Sakura will date me!" Sasuke's lips twitched upwards.

"In your dreams!" Sakura piped in, lightly smacking the blonde on the arm. The mood lightened considerably as Naruto called on his shadow clones. Multiple Naruto's began to working in renewed vigor.

Sasuke was so pleased he could laugh. He wasn't going to get whipped or have to lift a single finger in work. Wait- he felt unusually happy. His eyes narrowed. No, it couldn't be from Naruto now could it?

Memories of yesterday flashed before his eyes. But... Kakashi-sensei was too far away, wherever he was. He stared at the blonde. This was bad. He needed to get away, before he somehow got another laughing fit.

Sasuke made his escape towards a group of trees situated conveniently far enough from the two. He stared out from between the trees before he plopped himself on the ground and immediately closed his eyes, and drifted off.

* * *

Sasuke woke up to a face full of weeds.

"What the hell are you doing?" Naruto bent his knees and pointed accusingly at Sasuke. He clenched a fist full of weeds in his hand.

"Like I have to explain that to you…" Sasuke hissed, wiping dirt from his face.

"You asshole! You were sleeping the entire time weren't you?!"

"...idiot. I was taking a break. Besides, I bet you've barely pulled any weeds." Sasuke rolled his eyes but began to panic internally. Naruto's grin widened a the jab, causing Sasuke to throw a fallen weed at the blonde in irritation.

"Hehehehehe" Naruto dodged and let out a creepy laugh which only served to irritate Sasuke further.

"I'll show you MY pile," Naruto smirked and motioned for Sasuke.

Sasuke complied, following Naruto, just so the idiot would finally shut up. He'd probably even forget the fact that Sasuke decided to take a nap. What was there to be proud of anyways? It was just weeds. And it's not like the moron would've pulled a lot…

Sasuke stopped in his tracks

All he had to do was take a look from behind the trees to see a massive pile of pulled weeds.

It was a monstrosity.

He continued to follow Naruto in shock. How the hell did the dead last pull this off? Naruto on the other hand was grinning from ear to ear.

He suddenly disappeared out of existence.

So it was a shadow clone.

As it turns out, the real Naruto was sitting atop the humongous pile.

"Admit it Sasuke! I'm better than you!" Naruto shouted nearly losing his balance in the process. He hastily regained his footing sheepishly, before glaring back down at Sasuke like nothing happened.

Sasuke gaped. This idiot was better than him? In what way?! He continued his stare down with Naruto, refusing to say a word. This was utterly ridiculous. He couldn't- _shouldn't_ have lost to Naruto. He was speechless.

Naruto continued to egg him on, getting pissed by Sasuke's lack of words.

"Just admit it! You've been beat by the dead last, I won fair and square! You're the loser this time!"

Sasuke narrowed his eyes at Naruto's words, He couldn't stand for this. He wouldn't stand for this! Getting bested by Naruto, the dead last of all people... If he even bothered to try, if he wasn't so damn tired all the time, he could have pulled twice as many weeds. Sasuke wanted to say this, but he knew it was just an empty excuse.

He lost.

Sasuke glared at the laughing Naruto, sitting atop his massive pile of weeds. It was all the damn weeds fault. If it weren't for these infernal pests, Sasuke could have been lounging at home the entire day. He wouldn't have had to worry about getting whipped and he _definitely_ wouldn't have been mocked by the dead last for goodness sake. His eyes bore into the pile of weeds and a dark smiled appeared on his face.

Hands blurred through signs and he took a huge puff of air - _Fire style! Fire-Flower jutsu!_

The pile was set ablaze, the fire spreading quickly in all directions. He thought he heard some shrieks but didn't care, choosing to bask in sight of the embers. Why didn't he do this earlier?

Oh yeah... he'd fail the mission.

He was going to fail the mission. And receive one hundred lashes.

Sasuke's stomach dropped and he instantly regretted his actions. He panicked for a few minutes before shrugging his shoulders.

What's done is done, he decided, yawning. Perhaps now he could finally get some sleep. Sasuke was too engrossed in his fatigue, that he didn't notice the blaze heading towards him. Happiness quickly replaced sleepiness, as Sasuke felt himself being lifted from the ground. He didn't need to turn his head to see who it was. Kakashi-sensei.

He was thrown onto the ground, his fall cushioned by the dirt. The entire area was now lit ablaze, with multiple ninja trying to put it out. Sasuke scoured the area, but found no sign of Kakashi-sensei. Instead, heard a groan coming from beside him. Turning, he saw Naruto laying down. Sasuke winced, guilt flooding his chest. He had forgotten that the blonde was sitting atop the pile he angrily set ablaze.

"Sasuke!" Sakura came running towards the two. "Are you alright?" She asked concern flooding her features. She rushed towards sasuke, stepping on Naruto in the process.

Sasuke was surprised to see her, briefly forgetting that she was probably in the vicinity when he decided to burn the weeds. Naruto groaned in pain before quickly recovering and snapping his head towards Sasuke.

"You asshole! Why the hell did you do that?!" Sasuke winced, his ears rang from the volume in the blonde's voice. He was fairly surprised at how fast Naruto was able to recover.

"We're all going to get one hundred lashes!" Naruto began to run in circles, panicking. Sasuke briefly wondered how the blonde retained so much energy even after everything that happened. He watched the idiot for a while before, relaxing back onto the grass. Perhaps he could finally get some sle-

"Eh? One hundred lashes? Where'd you hear that from?" A new voice cut in. Sasuke opened his eyes in contempt. Why does everyone interrupt nap time?

He was immediately greeted with a noseful of smoke, making him to cough violently. A man stood above him, holding a cigarette. He felt slightly happier seeing a new face. Wait no. That wasn't right...

"Oh, sorry about that." The man waved his hand until the smoke dissipated. As he did so, Sasuke took the opportunity to "casually" distance himself from the man. He looked vaguely familiar…

"You're Ino's sensei!" Sakura exclaimed, eyes widening in recognition. Of course Sakura would know the answer, Sasuke mused. Just like his br- **no.**

"Yeah, yeah. The name's Asuma, I teach the brats." He waved off her outburst just as easily as he banished the smoke. "Now, what was that about the lashings?" He inquired, eyebrow raised. Sasuke furrowed his brows in confusion. This guy was a jonin. He should have known about the punishment. Unless…

"We're going to get one hundred lashes because we failed the mission! Kakashi-sensei said so.." Naruto wailed, Sasuke facepalmed. Of course the idiot wouldn't get it.

Asuma chuckled, placing a reassuring hand on Naruto's shoulder. "Kid, you've been hoodwinked."

Naruto merely stood, mouth agape at the revelation. So all this was for nothing? The pain, sweat (or lack of in Sasuke's case). Sasuke shut his mouth as his mood soared. He panicked when he saw Asuma coming towards him, and let out a small giggle. He struggled, trying to bite out full blown laughter.

Naruto and Sakura snapped their heads towards the sound and both looked at Sasuke bewildered, before bursting out in laughter themselves.

He soon joined in, too tired to restrain himself anymore. The three continued to laugh manically as the roaring fire swept through the area. Asuma warily looked at the three genin, slightly put off at the sight. He immediately opted to go help the other ninja contain the fire.

When the three finally stopped laughing, Sasuke held a small smile. One nagging thought lingered in the back of his mind however. He stared off into the depths of the fire, smile dropping.

Just what had happened to Shisui?

* * *

 **A/N: I'd like to thank everyone for the reviews, favorites and follows! Constructive criticism is appreciated!**


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